1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a recording and/or reproducing apparatus and more particularly to an apparatus in which a recording tape extracted out of a cassette is caused to travel outside the cassette for signal recording or reproduction.
2. Description of the Prior Art
For causing a recording tape to travel at a constant speed in carrying out signal recording or reproduction with an apparatus of the above-stated kind, there have been employed two methods. In one of the methods, a capstan is arranged to come behind a tape inside a cassette containing the tape when the cassette is inserted into the apparatus and a pinch roller is arranged to press the tape from outside against the capstan. In the other method, the pinch roller is arranged to be behind the tape inside the cassette when the cassette is inserted into the apparatus and to shift its position in such a way as to press the tape against the capstan which is disposed outside the cassette.
Either of the two methods for constant speed tape travel has been applied also to a video signal recording and/or reproducing apparatus called a video cassette recorder (hereinafter will be called VCR for short) which is arranged to have a magnetic recording tape extracted out of a cassette and wound around a cylinder assembly having a rotary magnetic head mounted thereon.
In accordance with the former method, however, the angle of an extracted portion of the tape tends to become acute and to increase the winding or wrapping angle of the tape relative to the pinch roller. Then, this places the tape under excessive stress.
In the case of the latter method, the shape of the opening of the cassette, the relation to the movement of other mechanisms and parts and requirement for reduction in size of the apparatus jointly present difficulty in obtaining a sufficient passage space for movment of the pinch roller. In other words, simple arrangement to allow the pinch roller to be moved by an arcuate or linear driving mechanism would cause the locations of the opening of the cassette, the tape path and other mechanisms and parts and the movement of other mechanisms and parts to be restricted by a passage space required for the movement of the pinch roller. Such restriction is impedimental to reduction in size of the apparatus. Accordingly, the latter method results in a complex passage for the movement of a driving mechanism for moving the pinch roller. This results in an increased size of the mechanism for moving the pinch roller.
Further, the latter method necessitates arrangement to stow a tape pulling-out member, the pinch roller, etc. all within a limited space of the opening of the cassette under a cassette unloading condition. The latter method, therefore, requires extremely complex structural arrangement. Besides, to prevent the tape from being damaged, the tape extracting member must be arranged to serve also as a rotating guide post. This, therefore, necessitates provision of many movable rotating guide posts. Further, after the pinch roller shifted close to the capstan, the former must be pushed against the capstan. With the mechanism for the above-stated operation arranged to be located within the above-stated limited space, the apparatus comes to require a large number of parts including many precision parts.